


cat whiskers, in five and a half parts

by minorseventh



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Oneshot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-21
Updated: 2017-04-17
Packaged: 2018-09-19 00:44:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 813
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9410006
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/minorseventh/pseuds/minorseventh
Summary: When I was fifteen and you, nineteen, I realized you existed after you bought a box of cereal. It was fate, really, that you had not only a) won a working black-and-white camera from a cereal box but b) decided to try out uploading yourself to that new YouTube platform. You know, at the time, we were both just nerds in our bedrooms, thousands of kilometres away, but you were the type of person to make another (read: me, Daniel James Howell) smile.And so I subscribed.(A bite-size phan time capsule to be interpreted whichever way you wish.)





	1. teens

When I was fifteen and you, nineteen, I realized you existed after you bought a box of cereal. It was fate, really, that you had not only a) won a working black-and-white camera from a cereal box but b) decided to try out recording and uploading yourself to that new YouTube platform.

You were talking about your life at uni, you were talking about lions, you were talking as a black-and-white pixelated boy with a distinctly Northern accent, and even without jumpcuts, I couldn't stop listening.

At the time, we were both just nerds in our bedrooms, thousands of kilometres away, but you were the type to make another smile. And so I subscribed.

 

\--

 

When I was seventeen and you, twenty-one, I realized you were my closest friend even though I had never spoke to you in person. It was strange, really, even though we had a) already met up virtually on all sorts of websites back then and b) made it past the typing interface with new forward steps on that Skype program.

You were talking about finishing up your school courses, you were talking about a new startup channel, you were talking as an adorkable boy on camera slowly sounding more Yorkshire, and I couldn't stop listening.

At the time, we were both afraid to go halfway across the country, dozens of hours constantly checking the time on a dying phone, but you were the type to make another travel. And so I opened my door and stepped outside.

(One day after we met, "phil is not on fire" happened, and my heart melted from the onomatopoeia... it has ever since.)

 

\--

 

When I was nineteen and you, twenty-three, I realized I needed a roommate who accepted my talking to myself in the middle of the night. It was chance, really, that you happened to a) not only need somebody to share the rent with, but b) actually seemed happy it could be me.

You were talking about collabs, you were talking about our Manchester life, you were talking as a lovable role model four years my senior that my parents weren't quite sure about, but I couldn't stop listening.

At the time, we were both just beginning to focus on videos, on the few hundred subscribers we had, but you told me to never give up. And so I continued to vlog; only now, you would help give me editing tips as well.

(Only thing was that my father didn't fancy the idea of me being in the company of a twenty-something man, who could "get up to whatever he wanted in the middle of the night and get away with it." I just think he didn't understand he was talking about Phil Lester.)


	2. twenties

When I was twenty-one and you, twenty-five, I realized you helped me make my life far more different than I thought it'd ever be. It was incredible, really, that we a) were million-subscriber YouTubers, and b) were even working with BBC Radio 1.

You were talking about going to Vegas from our new London apartment, you were talking about Tumblr, you were talking as a charming guy who was humble despite the multitude of pictures of you all over the web, and I couldn't stop listening.

At the time, we had so much potential. We could have done anything, gone anywhere, but you only ever asked me what I wished. And so I told you that one day, I wanted to go to Japan.

 

\--

 

When I was twenty-four and you, twenty-eight, I realized there was far more opportunities for us to play games together. It was genius, really, that a) we could record ourselves playing video games, and b) so many across the internet would geek out with us.

You were talking about DanAndPhilGames being the fastest growing channel on the website, you were talking about our new Amazing Projects which were Not on Fire, you were talking as somebody who, at approximately six foot two, was just another human shorter than me, but that I thought surpassed me in any way possible, and I couldn't stop listening.

At the time, Felix was right: we really were YouTube's power coupl- duo. We were such a perfect paradox: so successful, so perfect, so clumsy, so in love on so many levels. And I wouldn't have changed it for anything. Still wouldn't, to be honest.

(I've even adopted your high-five camera lens outro after my signature salute.)

 

\--

 

When I am twenty-six and you, thirty, I will realize what a blessing you have been in my life. It's brilliant, really, that the very fact that I have you as my partner in crime could make me an actor, an author, a filmmaker. All the dreams that I had imagined embarking on solo are now fulfilled, but I will know that I am no longer alone: I shall always have you.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading! you are better than toast. 
> 
> please note slight possible discrepancies due to creative liberties!


End file.
